From Across The Pond

After visiting Canada with the British Merchant Navy, this husband and father decided to move his family here 45 years ago, a decision he's never regretted

- Brian C. Merritt

We left England and flew into Montreal in January 1973. Our family of four included me and my wife, Elizabeth, our two teenage boys, Kevin and James, as well as our two dachshunds, Trudi and Bindi. I had visited Halifax and Montreal during my service with the British Merchant Navy and informed my family that if we could make it through a Canadian winter, we'd have a good chance of making a new life for ourselves. Hence our choice of arriving in January!

We started our Canadian adventure to a cacophony of barking from our dogs, who had spotted us going through Customs at the airport—no surprise, we sailed right through!

Leaving the terminal, our two boys began walking with difficulty. The suede coats they wore had frozen stiff in the -20°C temperatures. We hailed a cab, but found we actually needed two to accommodate all of our luggage and the kennels. The two cab drivers gave us a tour of downtown Montreal (with their meters off) before depositing us at our hotel.

EARLY DAYS

Our last night in England had been spent at a hotel near Manchester Airport. Breakfast in an English hotel is quiet, with only the rustle of newspapers and the occasional mutter of “Pass the marmalade, if you please” to disturb the diners. When we came down to breakfast at the hotel in Montreal, we were amazed at the lively, almost carnival like atmosphere in the coffee shop!

Our intention was to become self-employed by purchasing and operating a small pleasure-craft marina. To this end, we had pre-booked a train journey through to Saint John, N.B., where we had arranged with an agent to view several properties.